>> breaking news in russia where dozens of people have been killed and injured in what has been called a suicide attack on a train station. >> and a new report says al qaeda may not be responsible for the september 11th attack on the american consulate in benghazi. >> an ultimatum from south sudan - what the government threatens to do if the ceasefire is rejected. >> finally changing its tune - the boy scouts of america welcomes openly gay mems be -- members.

>> good morning, welcome to al jazeera america. i'm morgan radford. we begin with breaking news out of russia where a suicide bomb attack killed at least 15 people. 27 others are injured. the blast saw through a train vasion in a southern city of volgergrad. these are the latest pictures. a female suicide bomber detonated the explosives as she walked through the metal detectors. there's no claim of responsibility for the attack. russia has bund a height end state of alert ahead of winter games in february. we'll have a live report in a few moments. >> israel has fired a barrage of artillery shells across the border into lebanon after rockets from fired from lebanon

were fired into israel. no one was injured. tensions on the border are high after an israeli soldier killed a lebanon soldier earlier. >> the new report by the "new york times" is that the benghazi bombing was not at the handof al qaeda. since the attack some republicans argued not only that al qaeda was behind it but obama administration covered up the connection. the report says that instead benghazi residents joined the attack, angered by the release of an anti-islam video mocking the prophet mohammed. >> the attack was not meticulously planned and there were warning signs that a diplomatic cable described growing problems of security and

that the focus on al-qaeda distracted from serious threats within the country. jim walsh is a research associate at mit specialising international security saying that the u.s. security approach was not focused enough on the local threats. >> we assumed that the bigger groups were control the smaller groups. at the end of the day they had more allegiance locally than they did to us, so we did not get a warning and they did not control them. >> gunshots were fired as four libyan personnel were taken into custody. they were afraid of being robbed. the four americans taken into custody were released friday. >> an analysis of rockets used in a chemical weapons attack in

syria called into question the u.s. government's assertions about the event. the analysis points to the syrian regime being responsibility, but not that the sarin gas missiles were fired from the heart of government territory in damascus. the findings could lead to transpersons by from the white house about technical methods used by the white house to draw those conclusions. it prompted international action to strip syria of chemical weapons. >> the united nations has run flights into and out of syria for two weeks. relief helped thousands trapped in the country. that life line is in danger of being cut off. imran khan reports from erbil. >> the pallets are loaded. preparations begin.

the aid flights carry blankets, sanitation and clothing to some of syria's 4 million internally displaced people. the flights began on 17 december for unhcr. they say it's taken a massive effort. >> we had to transport from jordan and dubai, and from erbil to syria. >> getting all the permission to run the flights has been a hard business. this man was part of the talks and said the kurdistan government so doing its best to facilitate the flights. >> it's an agreement discussed at the offices in geneva between iraqi and united nations officers in geneva. as well as with the syrian officials. it has been an iraqi act and

syrian agreement to facilitate that flight. >> back on the apron, and the old russian cargo plane dating to the "70, and its ukrainian crew are ready to go. we are able to film this part of the journey. >> the syrian authorities will not allow us to get on the flight. once the flights come to an end, and it's been an initial experiment, all the relevant players will discuss whether to keep humanitarian corridor open for more of these flights into syria. >> these flights have been allowed to take place is a success for the u.n. refugee agency. continuing them and getting aid into syria is the focus. that will take political will

coming from damascus and the kurdistan government. >> the kurdistan regional government said it is hosting 97% of syrian refugees in iraq. >> a now national intelligence assessment said that a withdrawal of american troops from the country could make the country vulnerable to the t taliban and they'd likely re-emerge in three years. it doesn't account for how strong afghanistan security forces have become under u.s. training. >> one person is dead, two others injured after an attack on a pakistani hospital. two gunmen on a motorbike opened fire, killing the health worker in charge of a polio vaccination campaign. the anti-polo campaign was called a cover for spying.

no group claimed responsibility. polio workers and security personnel have been killed by militants. >> a peace deal is in jeopardy after the president attacked the strong hold of a rebel group, coming two weeks after heavy fighting. >> more than 1 thus people have been killed. u.n. peacekeepers arrived saturday. it tells us about rebel intent to recapture the city of bor. >> more fighting is expected in south sudan, with forces loyal to former vice president riek machar to be marching on the town of bor, the capital of the volatile jonglei state. they have been taken by the rebels, but the government forces took control of it, the fighting in the town. the government say riek machar is using tribal militia. they are from a subtried of

former vice president riek machar's nuer tribe. his side has not said that they are not marching or denied the claims but say they are numbering up to 25,000, and no tribe all militia. what we no so far is from the government that the militias are about 13 miles out of bor town, which with these fighting for bor town and conflict within unity state, it would complicate efforts to try to bring the two sides together in talks. east african leaders meeting in nairobi give the two sides up to 31 december to come together and hold face to face talks. so far the government committed itself to talks with their oappoints, but former vice president riek machar said that

he is not going to talk about a ceasefire until there is proper mechanisms for monitoring the ceasefire is in place. >> and some parts of the country are getting rain. other areas are dry. for more on the morning, let's bring in meteorologist eboni deon. >> we are seeing soggy conditions across the south-east. rain since yesterday and it continues to come down. we'll watch that closely. up and down the eastern sea board it will be a wet wrap-up to the weekend. 2 inches to the south and west of atlanta. 1.8 inches of rain. flooding is a concern, and we have flood watches up. we'll get snow eventually. colder air has time to make its

way across northern nonparole period. when it does, we'll see a little more of a mix of rain and freezing rain, changing to all snow. we have warpings in place across parts of vermont, new hampshire and maine. you few areas of 6-10 inches of snowfall. we are expecting snow across the upper midwest. it's the cold temperatures making it cold to head outside. you need to dress in layers, we need a number of areas. stretching down to central minnesota, an area where we could see wind chills 45 below zero. keep it in mind if you head out here. temperatures will stay cold, barely above zero as we head into the next few days. it's rushing south wards into the panhandle of texas.

it will stay cold. we are warm and dry across the south-west. winds whipping and the fire danger high. not only for los angeles, but around the bay area. >> and in a major reversal we'll have a report from the moscow and the train crash that happened in moscow, russia, a live report for you soon, within the hour. >> the battle ever same-sex marriage in utah is winding its way through the courts. how the fight is looking to help make couples make a life-time commitment. >> the playstation 4 is being sold for $1900 where sky high taxes raise the prices to five times what it sells for in the u.s. >> i'm mark morgan. with lebron james sidelined due to injury, a hero steps up and overrules his coach in the process. i'll explain later in sport.

>> good morning, welcome back to al jazeera america. i'm morgan radford, live from

new york city. ahead a major reversal for the boy scouts of america. first, a look at what temperatures will see across the company with meteorologist eboni deon. >> big changes across the upper midwest thanks to an arctic blast making its way south and east across the country. as we get through the day to day and early in the work week temperatures 40 degrees colder and in fargo 30 degrees. colder in bismark and the same story around rapid city. temperatures in the teens and below teens. once you factor into the little wind, it feels like we are at minus 41 in fargo. this is the conditions you'll see your flesh freezing. watch out for that. hypothermia. be careful head ing to that area. >> a burial for lebanon's former finance minister killed in a car

bomb two days ago. mohamad chatah was carried to the burial site, next to the mausoleum of saad al-hariri. security has been tight all day leading up to the funeral. mohamad chatah's allies are calling for a huge turn out. >> rula amin is in beirut and joins us for the latest. >> yes, we heard from the former prime minister. he is a living member of the future movement with the former prime minister. he said what was acceptable before the assassination is not acceptable after the assassination, saying the retaliation will be through peaceful protests, that they'll go to the square of lebanon to liberate them from the illegal

weapons of hezbollah. the march 14th coalition was not able to bring out a lot of people, a sign some say of losing support. >> no matter what they did, they feel they cannot stop future assassinations. >> the march 14th call out - security must be tight. can you tell us more about it. >> security has been tight for the last month and in the last two weeks, because they had information that there might be car bombs during christmas and new year's holidays. it's not the first bomb to hit lebanon. there were similar car bombs, but hitting different targets. shia residential and commercial areas are strongholds of

hezbollah. the target was a leading sunni politician from the camp, a different party in town. the sense that no one is secure, there's no safe zone, and many feel that the assassination is a signal of more security deterioration. >> mohamad chatah's funeral is taking place next to saad al-hariri's mausoleum. can we aspect any retaliation there? >> well, we heard from the politician. we said we are not going to call anybody in retaliation, but they'll try to retaliate by creating that his assassination will create momento for him to achieve political goals, forming a government not including hezbollah to put pressure on it to abandon weapons, a strong uphill battle.

hezbollah is clear that they will not let go of his arm. what is clear is that it polarized the country. >> more problems and troubles are expected in the coming months. >> rula amin, thank you for joining us from beirut. >> bringing in the new year as newlyweds. gaye couples in utah celebrate as the same-sex marriage ban was overturned. the fight is not over. the state wants the supreme court to step in. >> it's been an incredible week for many people in utah. so many called the situation surreal. hundreds of same-sex couples running out to get married, thousands turning out for a giant rally. we talked to couples - same-sex couples that had been together for 15, 18 years, they are so happy they'll be able to move

into the new year as newlyweds. the fight is not over yet. >> this has been the scene in utah for days. same-sex couples pouring into count clerk offices to get marriage licence, many turning to local officials and ministers to say "i do." >> to feel the love and joy and elation of people free to marry the person they love is beyond explanation. >> it was a shocking state of offenses. >> we never thought we'd see it here, never. >> all of this is possible by a lawsuit that changes utah's law on same-sex marriage. among the plaintiffs, derek kitchen and moudi sbeity. >> we heard the news when we were making food for the farmers' market. >> on december 20th a federal judge ruled that utah's law

banning same-sex marriage was unconstitutional. it's been euphoria in the gay committee since. >> thousands of couples want the same thing we want. we are fighting for ourselves, and for everybody as well. >> i pronounce you wife and wife. >> professor clifford rosky became a minister so he could wed gay couples, saying the impact goes beyond utah. >> for the first time we see even he in utah, federal courts recognise that same-sex couples have the right to marry. >> cheryl haws and shelly eyre's dream had to wait. the county clerk south of salt lake city refused to recognise the ruling. >> i said we are going there, even if they turn us away and we go to salt lake we'll go there

because we need to make a point. >> on thursday the utah county clerk brian thompson came in and called cheryl and shelley to come to his office, and he agreed to issue a licence. >> i thought it showed a great level of compassion and integrity and something. i felt compassion towards him. moudi sbeity and derek kitchen have not tide the knot. they want to wait until the time is right. >> marriage is more than a piece of paper. we want to celebrate and exchange vows. so to our family and friends that we have made a commitment to one another to be with each other till death do us part. >> by waiting moudi sbeity and derrick risk not getting the chance to marry. the utah attorney-general is expected to fire paperwork in appeal on monday or tuesday.

>> the state is trying to make sure they get the next move right. that should be filed next week. >> since same-sex unions became legal in utah, the number got t

steam i figured he'd get it. i told the coach let me pop a three. and i'm going to knock to down. so it went in. >> the heat are chasing frank vogel's pacers in the game at home. lance stevens got to going for the pacers. he's been a big surprise. stevenson 7-11 from the field, nine rebounds and seven assists and paul george took over, generating a lot of mpv talk, rightfully to. 24 on 9. the pacers as a team shot 53% and win, going away 105 to 91. the clippers hosting the jag, the blake griffin show. griffin, 13 of 20 from the field. he's doing more than dunking. he grabbed 10 boards on the

night, scoring 32 or more. he poured in 18 in the fourth, and the clippers beat utah 98 to 90. >> on campus kentucky and louisville renewed their rivalry. rick bett eeno coaching at u.k. and now leading. bett eeno on the left. harrison on the drive for the cats. watch james young come up with a steal. going for the rack. randell 17 for the game. louisville's russ smith shooting 17 of 20. the bucket memorable. that's worth another look. kentucky led for the game. the wildcats win bragging rights and the game 73-76. >> serra cues taken on. the

wildcats racing to a 25-7 lead. the orange tightened up the d, chipping away at the lead. sprinting away. a 70 and 60 win. unbeaten at 12 and 0, handing nova its first loss. >> it was one of the anticipated u.f.c. matches and produced an unexpected and shocking ending. chris wideman facing anderson's silver, beating silver with a knock out. he was the underdog. this onended at 116 -- one ended at 116. silver's shin bop snapped from the force of the -- shin bone snapped from the force of the blow. he fell to the canvas. the referee stopped the match of the the 38-year-old silver will ponder his future. that's it for sport. >> now back to our top story

where a deadly explosion at a russian train station occurred. >> peter sharp is on the phone from moscow. what do we know so far? >> the bomb exploded 3.5 hours ago at volgograd, 2.5 hours south of moscow. the - hello >> yes, we are hearing you peter. >> sorry, yes. the - it was carried out by a female suicide bomber. she managed to get into the station, and the device exploded in front of metal detectors. had she got through that she would have gone into the packed waiting room. the train station was crowded. this was a busy weekend in russia, before the annual holiday in the new year. there were thousands of people

at the tags. it happened 3.5 hours ago. they've been revising the numbers of dead and injured. 18 were killed. 40 people unjurd, including some children. >> do we know anything about the bomber. we know she was a woman and it sounds like a suicide attack. >> that's right. volgograd was struck by a suicide attack in october, october 21st when another suicide bomber exploded her device on a bus, leaving six dead and five injured. they are called the black widows by the local people. they are members of islamic groups in the caucasus, the southern caucasus fighting against federal forces. these women, who lost members of their family became suicide bombers, the so-called black

widows. it raises concerns for the winter olympics , starting on february 4th at socchi, 600km south of where the bomb went off. it's in the same reason. militants promised to destruct the games and as we have seen, they've been able to do what they did today. >> peter sharp reporting from moscow. thank you for joining us. >> ukraine's opposition stages a protest rally. what the government is doing about it - up text. >> iran is looking to draw in 10 million tourists next year. how an international agreement on the nuclear program could give the tourist industry quite the boost.

>> good morning. welcome back. i'm morgan radford. these are the top stories we are following. >> a suicide bomb attack in russia killed more than 15 people and injured dozens of others. here we see a picture of a blast which tore through a train station at volgograd. a female suicide bomber detonated explosives as she walked through the metal detector. new analysis of those rockets used in a major chemical weapons attack in syria called into question how the event went down. >> the analysis points to the syrian regime to be responsible. it does not point to the proposition that the missiles carrying the sarin gas was fired from the heart of the government territory in damascus. >> a new report says the

benghazi attack on a u.s. consular was led by militants, after the defeat of muammar gaddafi. >> protesters in ukraine have been saying this was a revolution to stablilize the country and not bring down the government. n [ singing ] >> for the past two months demonstrators call for the removal of their president. we go live to kiev where jennifer glass has more on what is to come. >> morgan, you join me here in a crowded independent square, the sixth sunday we see such large crowds, tens of thousands listening to thing opposition leader. they call for the resignation of viktor yanukovych. numbers have dwindled. it is the beginning of the

holiday season. ukraine is an orthodox country. christmas does not happen until january, new year's eve is a big holiday. the opposition leader has called on ukrainians to come here to celebrate new year's eve. >> now that there is a deal with russia, are people losing heart? >> well, i think people were very unhappy that president viktor yanukovych signed the deal with russia, worth about $25 billion to ukraine's struggling economy. concessions worth about $10 billion and bonds. >> the opposition acknowledges unanimous are getting smaller. but people are coming from all over ukraine, and last week at the rally they formed a people's movement, mydong, being square, euro square, because many would like the country to pivot

towards europe and their sensitivities are more europe than russia. many ukrainians in the west believe that their future really lies with russia, that their cultural history alliance them more with russia, and that is what i was seeing. there was a generation here. they expect people to head to the presidential house, a pal racial place outside of kiev. there were dozens of cars flying the flag, heading over there. there is some potential for conflict. we have seen in weeks the authorities have been restrained. at the prosecutor general's house, restrained. as demonstrators went to stand outside the home, they said they will try to put pressure on government officials. >> has the government begun to resort to violence to keep them

under control? >> we have certainly seen violent attacks on government oappoints, including a brutal attack on a journalist who has been an investigative journalist who broke into the president's residence last year to really make clear its op u lans. it's a 300 acre area with an op u lant house and golf course. that journalist was chased down the street by a black s.u.vl. they didn't know that the journalist had a dashboard camera, so five men are in custody. we don't know who was behind it all. she was the late ness a number of anti-government activists. opposition leaders say it is because the police can't come in here and attack the people that

they are attacking. to discourage gathering such as this. >> thank you so much jennifer glass for being was. >> staying in the area, a public screaming about the activist pussy riot was cancelled at the last minute. the directors of the theatre received a call threatening their jobs after two membebebeb prison under an amnesty from the kremlin. >> protesters are taking to the streets for the second straight week in thailand. they are happy to bring down the government. florence louie is live from bangkok. >> to the people in thailand it's a familiar site. since 2005 the country has seen various rounds of protests. this one similar to the one in in 2005 and 2008 are targeted to

the shinawatra family. they call the shots through his sister, the current prime minister. like in 2006, the main opposition party will boycott snap elections. some analysts believe the decision is tack takal. the last 20 years they have never won a clear outright victory. being government is not because they win the election, but they probably felt, one, it's impossible for them to have a chance to win in this coming election. that may be in the pack of their mind. >> the boycott could prompt a crisis. under thai law they need to win 20% v votes. in 2006 it caused the

constitutional court to nullify the vote. >> the fact of the matter is very a nothing to gain from a coup. we will not be part of the government it or power structure. what we are trying to do is regain the trust that all political parties lost, given the failed politics at the last decade. >> after the parties that supported thaksin won elections only to be disqualified by the court. it prompted a round of street protests in 2010. ending after the military moved in. >> politics in thailand is never straight forward. recent history showed no matter which side win, the rift in thailand's political divide stay

open for long after. >> thailand's prime minister has called for february elections in the hope of ending the rally. >> a federal judge is closing the book on hurricane katrina lawsuits after half a million people filed claims with the u.s. government. they were holding the arm your corp responsible for flooding in 2005. the core, however said, "not so fast" saying they did not have to pay for lost homes or property. >> stephanie boswell is there with nor. >> president hassan rouhani ushered in several reform, one to open up the borders for visitors. >> it's one of the highest and most pristine ski field. it is 3,600 metres up, one of the country's major attractions.

locals know it and are catching on. >> it's fun and the snow is good. >> locations is good, great, because of the mountain and we are astonished because the mountains are high and snow quality is great. >> iran's president is aiming to attract it 10 million foreign visitors each year, an increase from 4 million, comprising religious and medical tourists, with iran's good ties to china many are likely to be from there. >> now you know china developed very fast and the people's living standard is high. most of the chinese want to go abread, to have a visit of other -- abroad, to have a visit of other countries, such as iran. >> in order to handle more people the country needs

investment. >> the equipment is old. over the past 37 to 38 years it's remained the same and three new facilities have been added. the ski field has potential. the whole mountain can be used, and i hope investors in the company that supervise the resort invest more, making it bigger and bigger, so we can introduce it to the world, secure the future and make money. >> it's not hard to see why it's one of the best places for skiing and snow boarding. more than 2,000 come here every week, iranians and foreigners. it's not just amateurs and tourists. the national teams use the slopes for training. >> iranians have the best sites to themselves. with more tourists arriving from abroad. they are learning to share them for the benefit of everyone. >> iran's tourism industry is

also benefitting from a decrease of visitors to neighbouring countries. instability is driving the visitors away. >> the largest gaming convention in south america took place in sao paula. with consoles costing a fortune, what does that say about the brazilian economy? >> for five days they packed a convention centre, 150,000 people turning up for the largest video game show in latin america, it's the annual game show and fanatics waited in line for up to four hours to get a chance to try this, the new to be released sonistratioy playst but it will cost $1900, five times more than the retail price

in the u.s. 60%, sony says, is due to brazilian taxes. >> if i buy it, it will be abroad. >> translation: it will be sold to the brazilian elite. for it to become popular the price has to be reduced, otherwise no chance people can buy it. it's not just video games that are expensive, everything it - from eating out, buying groceries and now cars. expect to pay more. there are reasons for it. some is because brazil has the highest taxes in england and the world. >> the tax rate in brazil is 36% of gdp, equivalent to taxes paid in the outside world. people support the bureaucracy. the government consumes a lot of wealth. >> in downtown sao paula this

meter counts how much taxes brazilians are paying on goods and services. >> this year they have paid about 1.2 trill yop, about $550 billion. in the next 2 minutes that you are watching the story the meter will go up by 1.3 million. at this credit counselling center the line is out the door, representative of a slowing economy and people increasingly in debt to pay for spending in the boon years. rising inflation and a slow down in spending is changing the dynamics. at the game show they are awaiting to buy the fansiest games. here they'll have to save a lot more money to pay for them. >> protesters in brazil are upset money is being spent on stadiums for the world cup in

2014, and not on essential services like public transportation. hundreds of bikers in colorado revved up their enginesing for a memorial ride honouring high school shooting victim clair davis. donations will go to a charity in davis's name. the 17-year-old died on december 23rd after being shot by a fellow student. the shooter took his own life. >> former indiana congressman g jacobs died on sunday. he was an opponent of the vietnam war and helped to write the 1965 voting rights act. a touchstone of the civil rights litigation. >> the future of aerospace lies in the hands of these students. a different approach to education in seattle where college prep meets industry prep. and how a colorado town bounces

back from flood challenge. >> rain is on the move, i'll let you know where it's head and who will see a wet wrap-up to the weekend.

>> welcome back to al jazeera america. i'm morgan radford live from new york city. ahead the future of flying, a joints venture between airline manufacturers and high schooling. let's get a look at where the snow and rain mail fall with meteorologist eboni deon. >> it will mainly be the eastern u.s. getting all the action, working up the east coastline. still across the south-east where we see our fair share of rain. with additional rain fall that will continue to create the threat around parts of northern and central georgia. as we go through the day, notice the red showing up. that line of rain will push through northern areas today. and by this afternoon and evening we could be in line for

thunder storms. watch out around tampa and jacksonville. this is plain rain, of the sufficient to show you how mild temperatures are to show us rain. as we go through the day we see the area turning into snow. it looks like it will be a wet sunday and watching mainly light snow in the midwest and to the panhandle of texas. >> thank you so much. >> meanwhile many people in colorado are recovering from the floods that devastated the state back in september. residents are getting a little help from an unlikely survivor, calling it flood rum, because it sat in two feet of mud and muck in a back room, but it survived and is being packaged.

the bottles are selling for $100 a pop. >> everyone asks when will the flood rum be ready. >> some will go help rebuild a station house. >> high school graduation rates are at a high with 75% of students earn diplomas. some schools have higher numbers by teaching something different. allen schauffler looks at a school in seattle. >> it makes sense in a place nicknamed jet city and a place where it's estimated 130,000 people worked designing and building airplanes that there would be a school named aviation high. where you see planes out the classroom window. and you find skye mceowen loving maths. >> it's a language defining the universe. if you want to go maths and get off the planet we have to understand physics and the

nature of the universe. >> that's what sky and her classmates want to do - get off the planets. there's no organised sports, but making the robotic team is a big deal. >> we put a go pro on the robot. >> most classes have an aviation space or engineering theme. every student has a laptop. the nearby museum of flight has an extensive canvas much one in three who apply get into the school, and students come from all over the region. college prep meets industry prep. 200 aviation related companies nearby, the business community has bought in, providing instructors, real world job experience and money. seattle based alaska airlines $1.5 million. race back engineering, $3 million.

boeing, the jet building, $4 million. a third of the price tag paid by private donors. boeing's international rival increase. >> there is a gap that we have to start filling. >> the aerospace industry needs to help kids like these get ready to do jobs like these. >> our industry has huge challenges - environmental, fuel efficiency, cost challenges, quality challenges. to do all this we need really good people. >> among educators there's a push back when corporate money supports schools, with the expectation that the employee pool will be improved and businesses benefit. dr alex mollard is a researcher. he'd like to see corporations pay more taxes instead. >> it seems to me it's a good

idea. if it's tax contribution it's bad policy if you have a public edpu kags system relying on bits and scraps given as a matter of free will by a corporation here or there to promote its interest. >> the public-private union is seen differently, as a natural partner. >> it's critical that schools partner with business and industry. we can't do it alone. many educators have never worked outside the field of education. >> skye wants to build spaceships and see said this place as a launch pad to the dream. >> it's a humbling experience to go to the school. we are surrounded by male and female role models. they are showing us how to do

it. >> the world bank sees public-private partnerships as a better chance for parents to help their children and is working to fund many of these schools across the world in low income countries. >> it's a combination of r 2d 2 and robbo cops that can go anywhere. it takes 360 degrees video, uses thermoscope and recognises gestures. some say it's a privacy risk. >> some folks said privacy concerns and might put people on edge. do you know what puts people on edge? being shot at. the k 5 is 5 feet tall and a designed to send data wirelessly to a command center. and at the end of our first hour here is what we are following this morning - more than 15 have been killed in a suicide bomb attack at a train station in

russia, the blast happening outside of a metal detector >> a new report finds al qaeda not involved in the attack on an-american consulate in benghazi. the attack was led by militants who the u.s. tried to recruit as allies. >> south sudan's senior minister says troops will attack a rebel strong hold if forces loyal to a vice president do not accept the offer of a ceasefire. more than 100,000 have been killed in two weeks of violence. >> i'm tracking the mess in the east - details next. >> i'm morgan radford. al jazeera conditions and i'm back with you.

>> deadly blast - dozens killed or injured in an explosion this southern russia. >> and a new report casts doubt on whether al qaeda was responsible for the attack on the american consulate in benghazi. plus, crisis in the south sudan. the fighting spreads to 10 states, causing the government to make an ultimatum. >> and in ukraine thousands of anti-government demonstrators take to the streets demanding the resignation of their prime minister.

>> good morning, welcome back to al jazeera america live from new york city. i'm morgan radford. we begin with breaking news out of russia where a suicide bomb attack killed at least 18 people. dozens of others are injured. the explosion tore through a training station in the southern city of volgograd. we see a picture of the bomb blast. that's what it looked like, the fema building shaking. there was a people male suicide bomber who exploded her vest as she walked through the metal detectors. no one has tape responsibility. peter harp is in moscow. what more can you taken us. -- peter sharp is in moscow.

what more can you tell us? >> the attack took place hours ago. it is standing at 18 dead and 40 injured, including some children. the female suicide bomber was stopped just in front of the metal detectors, didn't go through the detectors and detonated the explosives. had she got through the metal detecting security service, she would have gone through a crowded waiting room and casualty figures could have been higher. this was one of the busy travel days in the year in russia. it comes before the annual newier's holiday -- new year's holiday. the station was crammed with passengers when the blast took place. no one claimed responsibility. we know that volgograd was hit by suicide bombers in the past.

a woman detonated a bomb on a crowded bus on october 21st, and that resulted in six dead and 37 injured. the real concern now is for the security services is making sure that the game, the winter games which open 4 february are safe, and they have deployed 37,000 troops and police around socchi, by is about 600 kilometres south of volgograd to private security for the -- provide security for the games. >> peter sharp reporting from moscow. >> al-qaeda war not involved in the attack on the consular attack in benghazi. it was led by militants who the u.s. tried to recruit as allies, after the defeat of muammar gaddafi. some argued that the barack obama administration covered up the al qaeda connection.

the report says benghazi resident joined in the attack. furthermore the report says that the attack was not meticulously planned but it was no spontaneous, but there were warning signs that a cable described growing problems of security and suggested that the focus distracted from serious threats within the country. jim walsh is a researcher at mit specialising in international security and said the security approached wasn't focused enough on the local threats. >> we thought the bigger groups would give us advantaged intelligence. they had more allegiance locally. we did not get a warning, and they did not control them. >> the obama administration

official said gunshots were fired before four americans were held at a checkpoint in libya. libyan soldiers took the personnel into custody and they seemed reluctant to stop, because local militias crowed the checkpoints. if they were afraid of being robbed, that's a reason they didn't stop. the four americans were released friday. >> a burial for lebanon's finance minister killed in a car bomb two days ago. mohamad chatah's casket was carried to the burial site, next to the mausoleum of saad al-hariri. saad al-hariri was assassinated in a bomb blast in 2005. security was tight. rula amin has more on the funeral from beirut. >> the body of mohamad chatah and his body guard killed in the car bomb were buried under that white tent. the funeral is over. the after math and the fall out

of the assassination are unfolding. today we heard from the former prime minister, a leading member in the future movement and the coalition that is anti-syria. he said they are not going to kill anyone in the retaliation, but they'll resort to peaceful protests to liberate - that's the term he used - lebanon from illegal weapons of hezbollah. they are trying to use the assassination to create momentum to achieve political goals - such as creating a new group. >> the turn out at the funeral was huge. it shows that some of the base supporters that the march 14th coalition had in the past is not as much as before. it the be an upkill battle for them to bring thousands on to

the streets again. >> israel fired a barrage of artillery schels after kat usuala-style rockets were filed. both rocket exchanges landed in uninhabited areas and no one was injured. tensions on the border were as high as they had been after an israeli solder killed a lebanon soldier. >> a report into the major chemical weapons attack, and points to the syrian regime as being responsible, but the findings do not support the u.s. government's position that the missiles carrying sarin gas were fired from the territory in damascus. findings could lead to transparency from the white house about technical methods that the u.s. government used to draw conclusions.

hundreds were killed in the attacks in august prompting action to strip syria. >> cargo exploded... >> ..the relief supplies help thousands trapped in the war-torn country. the life line is in danger of being cut off. >> imran khan reports from erbil in northern iraq. >> the pallets of cargo are loaded. final preparations begin. the vital aid flights into irria are carrying blankets, sanitation and clothing to some of syria's 4 million displaced perps. flights began on 17 december. they say it has taken a massive effort. >> we had to transport from jordan and dubai. and now to syria.

>> getting all the permission to run the aid flights is a difficult business, involving the kurdize tan government, the federal government and baghdad. >> this man was part of those talks, and said the kurdistan regional government is doing its best. >> it is in agreement in head quarter officers in geneva. it has been an iraqi and syrian agreement. it facilitated that, the plight on the airport. >> back on the apron and the old russian cargo plane, it's mainly ukrainian crew are ready to go. we are allowed to film this part of the journey. the syrian authorities won't

allow us to stay on the flight. giving us an indication of how politically charged the whole thing is. once the flights dom an end, and it -- come to an end and it has been an experiment. and keeping the humanitarian corridor open for flights into syria. that the flights have been allowed to take place is a success for the u.n. aid agency. >> that will take political will that needs to come from damascus, baghdad and the kurdistan regional government. >> the kurdistan regional government said it's hosting 97% of syrian refugees in iraq. secretary-general john kerry will push for a two-state solution. israel plans to release two dozen palestine prisoners.

israelis gathered outside the home. palestinians are upset over israeli plans to build homes in the west wank. a national intelligence assessment says the withdrawal of troops could make the country more vulnerable to the taliban. the findings say the taliban will re-emerge in 2014 american withdrawal deadline. some officials contradict the findings saying it doesn't act for how strong security forces have become. a peace deal is in jeopardy after the president threatened to attack the strong held. the comments coming after two weeks of fighting after rival ethnic factions. more than 1,000 people have been

killed, and thousands more are displaced. they tell us about rebel attempts. >> more fighting is expected in south sudan with forces loyal to former vice president riek machar marching on the strategic town of bor, the capital of the jonglei state. it had been taken by the rebels, but the government forces took control of it after fighting in that town. the government say riek machar is using tribal militia from the white army. they are from a subtribe of the nuer tribe. his side has not said that they are not marching or denied the government's claims. they say the men they using number up to 25,000. people who have come to the government's defence forces. we know so far, from the

government, that the militias are about 13 miles out of the bor town, which, with this fighting for bor town and conflict happening within unity state, would complicate efforts to try to bring the two sides together in talks. east african leaders meeting in nairobi get the two sides up to 31 december to come together and hold face to face talks. >> so far the government committed to talks with the opponents, but former vice president riek machar said that he is not going to talk about a ceasefire until there is proper mechanisms for monitoring the crease fire that has been put in place. >> good sunday morning to you. much of the country will stay on the dry side. the eastern u.s. will be a

soaking mess thanks to a storm system making its way from the south-east all the way to new england as we go through the day. we'll see the rain overspreading much of the area, even back to parts of the ohio valley. the air is on the mild side. changes on the way. some of the rain changing to snow. as it does, as we get into the evening hours, new hampshire and main, we can end up with 6-10 inches of snow, and that is why we have a winter storm warning for the area, shaded in the darker blue and winter weather advisories in vermont and new hampshire. could see a little bit of that, rather, accumulating into the higher elevations of new york. to the upper midwest it's been called the last couple of days. we'll keep the winds in place, and with the winds picking up it will feel colder.

we'll have widespread advisories in place and winter weather advisories. most of the snow, 1-3 inches. a few spots could see more than that, sales as we get to northern areas of minnesota, and michigan we see the snow accumulating. as we go to the next couple of days, chicago with rapid changes. dropping temperature from 31. this is an early afternoon high, down to the teens by monday. falling temperatures catch a break in the snow, but staying below average as we go through the work week ahead. >> protesters in the ukraine have been saying this is a revolution to stablilize the country, and not to bring down the government. [ singing ] >> over the past two months demonstrators have been calling for the removal of their president. jennifer glass is in kiev, where she has more on what is

happening and what is to come. now that there's a deal with russia, are people losing heart? >> well, morgan, we see the numbers here in independence square, the heart of the protest dwindle day by day. the protests are entering their sixth week. sundays are when the numbers are the biggest. the square is full, but there were thousands more here. about an hour ago opposition leaders were speaking. 13 miles from here. outside of kiev thousands are converging on the president's residence, his palatial home near the sea of kiev. there was a rod block, but it was peacefully dismantled and hundreds of people in cars. directly at the president's house. that's what we have seen in the last few days, direct pressure

on individuals. protests in the square lose a little momentum. the idea here will continue. given the direct pressure on the individuals, it's been two months. how much longer do you think you can hold out? . >> well, we'll see on new year's eve where - how many people come out here and whether things continue. it's the beginning of the holiday season. people are nott work. basically the opposition leader says they started a civic movement and that's what they see is the next step forward. >> thank you jennifer glass, live from kiev. >> turkey's prime minister digs in as calls grow louder for him to step down. >> a former u.s. ambassador to the country joins us with the analysis of a corruption investigation. >> unrest in ireland where a

former american diplomat steps in to calm down interpretations between catholics and protest ants. >> a 5.53 billion - that's the big number for today. we'll tell you which budget in 2014 will have the zeros next year.

>> now to today's very big number - $5.53 billion. that's the amount of money the united nations general assembly approved for its budget next year, the second year in a row that u.n. members states voted to slash spending. the cut welcomed by the u.s. government contributing 22% of the world body's funding. welcome back to al jazeera america. i'm morgan radford live from new york city. just ahead an american diplomat called in to ease unrest. let's see what temperatures will see with meteorologist eboni

deon. >> it will stale on the cold side. -- it will stay on the cold side. temperatures falling colder. as you step outside in bargo it feels like minus 35 and minus 14 in rapid city. minus six in biz mark. definitely another day to dress in the layers. into the north-east mild. 40s as you head out at the hour. it will turn colder. milledest air in place. >> thank you so much. >> anti-government protests continue in turkey. protesters are calling on the prime minister to step down. on saturday the prime minister accused a us-based muslim cleric of issuingest rating the corruption flow. here to weigh in is james jeffrey a former ambassador for

turkey and visiting fellow at the washington institute. he's in washington d.c. >> good morning. >> the prime minister attended a rally of supporters, essentially blaming the investigation on a foreign plot. could this be a diversion? >> of course it is. these corruption scandals cannot be questioned in the sense that there's absolute evidence that a great deal has happened and the police and the judiciary are trying to get to the other part of it. recep tayyip erdogan on the one side and a cleric, fethullah gelun, an recep tayyip erdogan supporter until recently. this is more than a struggle within the party, it's a struggle for democracy in turkey. >> that is big. let's talk about your background. there were reports suggesting turkey wanted to expel the american ambassador over this

very investigation. so has the former ambassador to turkey, how do you imagine we got to this point? >> we got to this point because you have power on the part of the the ak party, the party that recep tayyip erdogan leads. with that growth and power came increasing corruption - that's normal - but the difference is rather than dealing with that recep tayyip erdogan simply accuses anyone who raises questions about anything that happens in the party or government - the word he used yesterday is traitors. he is challenging the judiciary and the political will of the turkish people, and this dispute is going to grow worse. >> let's talk about his relationship to president obama. the u.s. and turkey are at odds. turkey is considered an american ally, what would it take for the

u.s. and turkey to trust each other again. >> this is not about america and turkey. it's about two governments and two leaders. turkey is a native ally and will stay an ally of the u.s. >> how do we help prime minister recep tayyip erdogan dig himself out of the role. >> the u.s. can play a role, but quietly, prime minister recep tayyip erdogan has to stop unjustly accusing us and our ambassador. >> you mention the roles. the turk yish military says it will remain neutral. can that happen? what happens if it doesn't. >> it played a role in the past in politics. a successful thing is to clip the wings of the military in terms of interfering. nonetheless. the military had to issue the statement is an indication that senior generals were getting

nervous about the direction the country was going. >> ambassador james jeffrey, former ambassador to turkey. thank you for joining us. >> thank you. >> for jernations catholics and protest ants clashed and now new disagreements over flags and parades can break an uneasy peace. there's an american diplomat in belfast trying to ease the interpretations. >> they are calling it a final effort to reach agreement between northern island's political parties. as richard haass and his name belfast admit that it is difficult. >> on monday we'll have had 12 hours of plenary sessions. it will be very hard at that point, given everything that will have come before it, to argue that the missing ingredient is more time. >> the issue that has been

toughest to crack is flags. >> in late 2012 belfast city council voted to fly the british flag from city hall to other buildings, sparking street profests in which more than 100 police were injured. >> it's like flying whenever it wants it to fly. nationalists say, "no", 40% of us are catholic nationals and we feel you shouldn't rub our noses in it and fly the flag where we don't want to to fly, and we want it flying sometimes. >> a recurring source of tension is the marching parades. parades organised by protetant groups, like the orange order, take place. parades through catholic areas provoke antagonism and clashes. the talks have seep progress on that and other issues dealing with a legacy of violence.

the troubles preceding the 1998 agreements. nobody was brought to justice. the reports of victims group, the studies by civil society, conversations that had been had, dealing with the past. all of those things influenced the process. that is another example of how we weren't starting from square one or a well developed conversation. >> if the talks lead to an overall agreement it could be a long time before northern island deals with years of resent m and misunderstanding. >> northern island is governed by britain. the rest of ireland gained independence from the british in the 1920s. a new year and a new image for the boy scouts of america. open reply gaye scouts will be welcomed january 1st. under the new rules kids can't be banned for sexual

orientation. the new policy was approved in may with support from 60% of 1,400 voting members. and coming up - we'll take a look back at the year in politics. a shutdown that nearly pushed us off the cliff to a botched roll off. >> i'm mark morgan - coming up we'll tell you about an n.f.l. player that shuns the spotlight but may be the center of tapes today. -- center of tapes today. -- center of attention today.

>> good morning, welcome back. you are watching al jazeera america. i'm morgan radford live from new york city. here are the top stories - a suicide bomb attack in russia killed at least 15 people and injured dozens of others. here we see a picture of that actual blast, which tore through a train station in the southern

city of volgograd. a female suicide bomber detonated explosives. a peace deal between the government of south sudan and a militia group lead by the former vice president is in jeopody. the president said he'll attack a rebel stronghold if the group does not sign on to the agreement. more than 1,000 died since clashes broke out between the two main ethnic groups two weeks ago. >> al qaeda was not involved in an attack on benghazi consular. >> one week to go until parliamentary elections in bangladesh. the opposition is boycotting the elections, predighting a million people about -- predighting a million people will descend on the capital. there's concerns that the

protest could become violence. >> rifles loaded, foundation and armed forces on the street, ready for action. the country has a history of coups, but this time the military has been called on to keep the peace ahead of an election that could get nasty. >> their main task is to provide law and order, create a peaceful and congenial environment so that voters can go out to vote without any intimidation, or fear of being attacked or hurt. >> the opposition bangladesh nationalist party, the bnt are boycotting the election to be held on january 5th. they asked for people to define the polls. bnp executives have been targeted for detention. >> there were cases against

thousand of bnp leaders and workers. most of them cannot stay at their home. i was admitted to hospital at a place i was trying to escape arrest, not at my home. >> opposition protesters demanded that the election be held under a caretaker government. polls from the ruling army will not be fair and free. the international community agrees the u.s. and e.u. will not send observers to the election. the up-colling vote was called a farce. people are lining up for ids, there wasn't much need for me to join them. the candidate is running unopposed. half of the members of parliament are going to win elections that are uncontested. >> many like this man will be

robbed of a voice in this election. >> translation: it's terrible. i'm a citizen of this country, but i don't have a say. they'll be elected before a vote is cast. >> a court hearing on whether the polls are legal will be held on january 2nd. two days before the voting is due to take place. >> 2013 has been a bad year. if the stalemate over the election is not solved 2014 could be worse. >> as 2013 comes to an end there's little arguing over the fact that washington is suffering gridlock and the president suffered disappointments from both sides of the aisle. we are have a professor at columbian university to go own 2013. >> what do you think was the

biggest political story? >> it has to be the health care roll out. the president's signature policy. it was years in the making. he used political capital. come down to the implement scpags it goes wrong. it cost him a tremendous amount of support. you see as we go 2014 that you have a lot of democrats on a ballot running away from the bill. he's not on the ballot in 2014. it's a tremendous problem for him not just in terms of messaging which he likes to talk about, but down the road in terms of getting his policies implemented. what you're telling me is that michelle obama's bangs were not, in fact, the biggest story of 2014. >> it's important, but not the biggest. >> let's talk about something that is a big story. unemployment benefits.

it's a big political hot potato. why now. unemployment benefits have been around for a long time. why a big deal at the end of the year. the fact that congress or the budget deal did not ask for an extension of unemployment benefits says that people who have been long-term unemployed are not going to get any extra money. research says that the more people that are unemployed, the longer they stay on unemployment benefits. the more likely they won't find a job. folks say, "look, we are coming off the worst financial crisis. we'll give the folks extra support. >> if you add to that the fact that food stamps should be reduced. gas prices - there's a huge

concern around unemployment ben lit. the g.o.p. has done a lot of change his imlij, beginning immediately after last year's election. what are some of the biggest changes made by the republicans. >> what i found to be interesting is you had john boehner and mcconnell fighting with the conservatives. there was a battle going on because they realised going into 2014, they didn't want the tea party influence. you saw the budget deal with patty murray doing the deal together. what is interesting is the strength from the president, from democrats, is pushing for the end of the filibuster, forcing the shutdown. the strengths say that the republicans are looking for a way out, if you will. to be able to say they have done work. take that back to the constituents next year. hopefully they'll have

victories. i am not sure that will happen, if they can tighten the message quickly enough. they stumbled through that. they didn't get education down. if they can get the party in order, there may be some stability. >> looking ahead to 2014, what will we see - business as usual or the same government gridlock that we saw last year? >> you'll see a little grid look around hot-button issues. the republicans will have to play nice, because they have opportunities to win if they can really talk about the health care roll out, how bad that is for a lot of americans. they can talk about how the president wasn't particularly open and honest about how many people would lose the coverage. there's a lot that the republicans can talk about. i'm not sure that there'll be

enough cohesion within the party to do that in a way to get them additional seats. >> we'll find out in a few day's time. thank you for being with us this morning. >> the first elections without nelson mandela are approaching in south africa. and in an election usually dominated by race, tania paige takes us to a place where colour doesn't mean voting black. >> this is the cape town you will not find in tourist brochures. there's a distinct group of people from mixed race known as coloured. many speak highly of nelson mandela. most don't vote for his party. the western province is the only one not held by the a.n.c. recently they voted for the democratics alliance, a party predominantly white. >> tony doesn't think that will change the the elizabeth next

year. these beam were treated better under apartheid than blacks, and feel loyal to whites. >> they were party to marginalising and respecting blacks that came into the area in pursuit of jobs and other facilities. in many reports they identified with the europeans, and this disassociated themes. >> some say ta race is an issue, others say it comes down who governs getter trps 2001s people watch tv, read the papers and fraud. it's the people in governments that do those things. >> like the a.n.c. struggled, so has the democratic alliance. in some parts of the city it seems little has changed. it seems as if people here have

no intention of changing voting patterns at elections. >> complexities of apartheid are concentrated. the colour of a person's skin in some areas still matter. >> good morning everyone, later today the chick bears face the packers in a play-off elimination game. lining up will be rock solid running back matt forta, remaining below the radar with others getting tapes, which is how he prefers it. here is john henry smith. >> he's the go everything, running back tore the chicago bears. still, there's a few things matt forte doesn't do. for one thing he doesn't do flashy. >> some people once they are

flashy and promote themselves they get more recognised by the world. i stick by what the bible says - be in the world, but not of the world. another thing matt forta doesn't down is get in trouble. particularly with drinking and driving, why have you been able to keep your nose clean. >> i don't really drink. my father and mother disciplined me and my mother. >> lance's father jean was a fam captain. matt followed in the footsteps by becoming team captain. matt forta dreamed of doing one better. >> when i was seven years old and played. i told my dad i'd play professional football. he looked at me a little crazy, but i had the drive and determination to make it. i put in the work to do that. i can't believe i'm in my sixth year of playing. >> the running back against whom all bears mention is the late,

great walter pay tonne. >> he made a lot of yards. it's hard to compare yourself. you know, it's a cool thing you have here, playing for the city, the team he played for, and the same position. you have a lot to live up to. >> as great as things are, you live with uncertainty in 2011 when he thought he should be paid among the best running backs. and the bears didn't. >> instead of holding out in training camp forta gambled that he could hold up as he demonstrated his value. everyone is rooting for you. is it true at the bottom of piles opponents asked "did you get the money yet?" . >> after the games they said, "hey, man, keep playing hard, you'll get paid." it reassured

me i was doing the right thing, not going crazy in the media. >> on july 16th, 2012, forta and the bears great on a $42 million deal. with walter peyton's rushing record 10,000 yards away, catching sweetness will be a tougher task, but not an impossible one. >> i say the sky is the limit. especially with the coach. there's a lot of room for me to do big things like that. >> john henry smith. >> forta has 100 rushes, averaging 5 yards, moving to second on the bears all-time rushing list, trailing only hall of famer walter peyton. >> a modern spin on classical

works. leo tolstoy's great grand daughter giving his works an update. >> bosch overruling his coach after stepping up. i'll explain later in sport. only on al jazeera america

>> >> welcome back to al jazeera america. there's a soggy forecast for the north-east. meteorologist eboni deon is here with the latest. >> it's in the south-east. it's still coming down. you can see where we have yellow and red. all the rain will make its way up the coast. we are watching a line of rain. moving across northern and central areas. rain spread to the mid-atlantic area. e eventually the rain moving. some of the rain will change to snow for northern areas of new

england. >> a hollywood thriller set in the mountains of new jersey refused rave re views from critics. but the native earn tribe its villains are based on are not happy. kaelyn forde has more. >> for centuries the ramapough yinnedian nation called these mountains home. just 30 files from new york city, the tribe of 5,000 kept their traditions alive. >> it's called a kinduwahwekan. it's where we come and pray and the images you see are essentially spirits of the forest. the ramapough have 16 acres of land over the border. the tribe said there has been a struggle to keep the land and protect the culture. >> racism and discrimination for decades. now, the ramapough say the

hollywood film set in the mountains opened old wounds. people in the hills do not include us. >> out of the furnace tells the story of a kidnapping. the main villain, degroat is one of two characters bearing a ramapough name. jackson whites is a name used, a slur against the ramapough. >> the real issue with the film is that it's not that it's racing all the way through. the underlying current is ugly. so pronounced. it was so identifiably connected to the tribal people. it had given cart blanch to hatred. >> it didn't happen until yesterday. morningstar mann said her children had been bullied.

>> the substitute teacher came into a conversation my niece was having and made the comment that family members deserved to get shot and we were one of those people. my niece - she said, "what is a jackson white?" >> the prayer house was vandalized. >> the racism was dying down, it really was. what this movie does is brings back - i went to the movie and started crying. >> 17 members of the tribe, several with the last name degroat filed a lawsuit against the film makers. chief perry is not backing the lawsuit, he would rather see the film pulled and the makers apologise. >> for the ramapough, it's a drama that hasn't ended when the cameras turn off.

>> good morning. we begin in the n.b.a., lebron james sat out miami's showdown. james nursing a trained groin and angle. the first game missed this season. ending 7 and 1. the blazers tied with oklahoma city. lebron james watched in street clothes check this out. portland - they have done it all season. hitting 11 beyond the ark, leading by four. check it out. dwayne wade finding barb for a triple to tie the game. final seconds. in the previous time out the head coach drew up a play for bosch, he said, "no, i'm not taking a two i'm taking a three to win the game", and he does. it set off a wild celebration. the mob boss 108-107.

it's worth another look. this was a big win for the defending champs on the road. >> the heat are chasing the pacers in the east against a struggling lance stevenson on fire early. stevenson 7 and 11 from the field, 23, 9 and seven. george taking over, generating mpv talk. pacers as a team shoot over 53%, winning it 105 to 91. to the college came kentucky and louisville renew their rivalry. the wildcats won it all. the cardinals grabbed the title: lousiville adds more spice. bett eeno on the left. andrew harrison on the drive. two of 18. james young with the steel, driving to the hoop.

no randall. 17 for the game. louisville's rush shot. he made in memorable. dumping in randell's face. uk led. the cardinals made a few runs. alex with the feed. the wildcats win bragging rights and the game 73-76. it was one of the most anticipated u.f.c. matches in history and came to an unexpected shocking ending. this ended at 116 when anderson silver through a kick that chris checked. stim the chin bone snapped from the force of the blow. he fell to the cann if as. wideman beat him and was the undog. wideman improving to 11 and 0. silver left no ponder his future. i'm mark morgan. those are your sport headlines.

>> he was a russian novelist inspiring leaders. now leo tolstoy's body of works is being digitised for all the world to see. >> this is the voice of the 19th century leo tolstoy, wide by considered are great novelist for "war and peace", and "anna karenina", this shows him in his final years at his country estate. we caught up with his great-great-granddaughter at his house, now the leo tolstoy museum. she was in the middle of a magazine shoot. she's been the driving force behind the project to digitise the works of leo tolstoy, to put a new generation in touch with his heritage online.

>> i wanted people to return to reading leo tolstoy with all the way modern tech mollingy offers. this is -- technology offers. this is part of our heritage. not all of it is on the internet. 2,000 works were published. impossible to buy. >> it's this russian company that was charged with a task for getting leo tolstoy works on lun. not just a 90 volume collection, but diaries and lesser well-known works. a cost of the doing this threatened to halt the project in its tracks. thousands volunteered to help. >> leo tolstoy's country statement attracts a small stream of visitors, it's hoped the project will reignite

interest and boost numbers. inside the house everything has been remarkably preserved. it's as though the distinguished writer stepped outside. and is expected back at any minute. >> perhaps leo tolstoy's famous quote comes from the opening lines of "anna karenina", happy families are all alike. every unhappy family is unhappy in different ways. >> at the end of his life leo tolstoy said "i don't need money for my work, i want to give it to the people." his will has been granted, in a way he never could have perceived. >> and at the end of our second hour, here is what we are

following this morning - more than a dozen people are dead after a suicide attack at a train station in russia. the number injured stands at more than 30. south sudan's senior minister says droops will attack a stronghold if rebels do not accept a cease fire >> a new report finds al qaeda was not involved in an attack on the american consulate in libya. the "new york times" said the attack was led by mill tants who the u.s. tried to recruit as allies. coming up more news for you in 2.5 minutes with del walters, and he is up next.

>> at least 14 killed after a suicide bomb attack tears through a train station in russia. a new report saying al qaeda may not be responsible for the september 11th attack on the american consulate in benghazi libya. >> an ultimatum from south sudan dash what the government is threatening to do if the cease fire is rejected. >> changing its tune - the boy scouts openly welcoming gay members. >> we begin with the suicide

bomb attack. it now killed 14 people, dozens of others injured. the explosion tearing through the train station in the southern city of overrad. we see a picture of the bomb blast taking place. it's believed the suicide bomber detonated her explosions as she approached the metal detector. no one claimed responsibility. russian president vladimir putin ordered law enforcement to step up security. >> we have joined by roland via skype. what do you know about the blast and who might be behind it? >> there's about 15 people dead as far as we know at the moment. the wounded is the - the counter count for the wounded is 36. it seems to be going up and depending which state agency he talked to it's not clear. we are looking at 15, maybe more

that that dead and tens, dozens of people wounded. as for what was behind it, i don't think we are really going out on a limb to say this is the work of the same people in moscow airport and the moscow metro in 2010. that is to say the islamist insurgency, essentially to give you a brief idea of what is going on there, the separatist checkan insewerage si, a nationalist thing that fought two wars and lost, mewettated into a pan caucasian islamist insurgency fighting across the north caucasus, and it looks like what they have done before. >> from an american standpoint they are thinking of the upcoming olympic games in socchi. how safe can russia say the games will be when this type of

thing happens on the eve of the games? >> it's impossible to tell. there's a dearth of information. the fsd and vladimir putin said essentially we put it ripping of steal around socchi. you can be sure they have down that. this olympics is known as putin's baby and he's determined nothing will go wrong. i think they have done everything they can to secure socchi. >> nothing has gone wrong here in socchi, but something went terribly wrong in moscow. does that not put a ding in the armour of russian president vladimir putin. >> it went wrong in volgograd, which is about - i mean, the thing is it volgograd is 400 miles from soepy, it's not next door. one piece of thinking behind this is security in socchi is so tight for the terroist it's not worth of the risk of striking there. you are likely to get caught, but it's easy to get attacked in

other parts of the country. i have been speaking to russian security experts saying it's the second attack. there was a suicide attack on a bus there in october. there's no record of attacking volgograd before, and it looks to some russian security experts like diversionary attacks. you get people, and the security services thigeing okay, terrorists will trike, get their attention, and they try something at socchi. it's impossible to tell what is going on. we don't have direct contact with the insurgents. the russian security services play their cards close to their chest. >> roland olly fant, a correspondent with the telegraph there. >> al qaeda was not involved in the attack on the american consulate in benghazi. that attack, you might recall

killed ambassador chris stevens and three others. some arguing that al qaeda planned the attack and the white house covered it up. the attack carried out by militants. it was following the death of muammar gaddafi. benghazi residents joined in, fuelled by the release of an anti-islam video. here are key points from the report as we mentioned. the attack was not carefully planned or spontaneous either. there were warning signs. a report citing a diplomatic cable, citing groiing security concerns. focussing on al-qaeda it distracted from more serious threats inside the country. >> jim walsh specialises in international security, saying the approach was flawed. >> we sort of assumed the bigger groups would control the smaller

groups or give us advance intelligence. at the end of the day they had more aleemance than us, to be did not control them. >> gunshots were fired before a checkpoint. soldiers in libya took four americans into custody on friday. many are afraid of being robbed. >> lebanon's former finance minister killed and a car bomb laid to rest. mohamad chatah's casket was carried to the burial site. laid to rest near the body of saad al-hariri, he was assassinated in a bomb blast in 2005. there was tight security leading to that funeral. >> israel firing a barrage of artillery shells into lebanon,

after a rocket was fired from lebanon into israel. they landed near the border town. they landed as an uninhabited area, no one was injured. tensions on the border are at the highest they have been since an israeli soldier killed a lebanese soldier. >> there are reports that the president threatened to attack a strong hold. more than 1,000 in central african republic have been killed. thousands displaced. we talk about rebel attempts to recapture a key city, bor. >> more fighting is expected in south sued jp, with forces loyal to former vice president riek machar, marching on the town, a capital of the jonglei state.

earlier on it had been taken by the rebels. government forces took control of it. the government faced riek machar is using travel militia. from the subtribe of vice president riek machar's tribe. his side has not said they are not marching, but the men they are using is up to 25,000, not tribal militia. people that came to the government's defence forces. we know from the government that militias are outside from border town. conflict happening within unity state would complicate efforts to bring the two sides together in talks. leaders meeting in nairobi gave

the two sides up to 31 december to come together and hold face to face talks. so far the government committed themselves to talks. the president salva kiir won't talk about a ceasefire until there's proper mechanisms to monitor the ceasefire. >> that was centre south sudan. >> some of you getting wet, others staying dry. for more on the forecast we dourn to eboni deon. >> if you are in the north-east a day for the umbrella. rain up and down the eastern sea bored. most concentrated across the south-east. all the wet weather is on the move. heading and widespread from the mid-atlantic to the ohio valley.

bringing moisture into parts of new england. a lot of rainfall making its way up to coast. the big story here is that bitterly cold air mass in place. temperatures expected to stay in the single digits or below. the cold spell will last through much of the work weekend. typically this time of year temperatures around 24 degrees. yesterday we set a record at 47. single digits. temperatures dropping. let's make it this way all the way down to areas of the southern plains. temperatures falling. in advance of the strong cold front it will be a nice day, shaping up around houston, temperatures in the mid 60, and we'll see the front moving in. really not expectations to see the snow showers. we could hear the rain fall in the south-west. it's been dry, seeing about

three to four inches of rainfall. we could use the rain, notice the forecast remaining rain free, and temperatures above average. that is going to cause concern. we are watching out for that, not only across parts of sworn areas but into the bay areas. with the gusty winds and dry conditions, fire danger will be with us. we need to be extra careful. temperatures will stay cold across the upper midwest while we keep it warm. more on the temperature side of the story. >> bring out the bumper sheets much thank you. >> there's a new national intelligence assessment out saying pulling u.s. troops out of afghanistan could lead the country more vulnerable to attacks by the taliban. the taliban could re-emerge three years after troops withdraw in to 2014.

>> one person is dead, two injured following an attack at a hospital. two men on a motorbike killing some in charge of an anti-polio campaign. some are calling it a cover up for spying. no group claimed responsibility. several polo workers and security personnel have been killed in recent months. >> there's a new analysis of rockets used in the chemical weapons attack in syria. the white house blames the syrian regime. the report counters claims that the missiles fired from the government held damascus. hundreds were killed in the

attack. united nations continue to run aid flights into syria. the two week efforts helping thousands trapped in the country. one key life line is in danger of being cut off. imran khan reports. >> the pallets are loaded. final preparations are in. the flights began on 17 december or unhcr, the u.n. refugee agency. they say it took a massive effort. >> we had to transfer from jordan, and now to syria. >> getting all the permission to run aid flights has been a difficult beside involving the kurdistan government, the federal government in baghdad and the siian regime.

>> this man was part of the talks and said the kurdistan government is doing its best to facilitate the flights. >> it's been agreement at the hour offices in geneva, the united nations officers in geneva. as well as the syrian officials. it has been an iraqi and syrian agreement for the flights. >> dating back to the "70, the ukrainian crew are ready to go. we are allowed to film this part of the journey. >> the syrian authorities will not allow us to get on to the site, giving an indication of how politically charged the whole thing is. once it has been to an end,

relevant players will discuss the humanitarian corridor open. >> that these flights have been able to take place is a success for the u.n. refugee agency continuing them will take political will from damascus, baghdad and the kurdistan regional government. >> and that regional government in kurdistan playing host to 97% of syrian refugees living in iraq. >> in a maimer rehearsal the -- major rehearsal the boy scouts changing its position and accepting gay members. >> the battle on same-sex marriage in utah is making its way back to court, affecting life line commitments between

couples. >> sony playstation 4 $1900 in some countries, five times the price of what it sells for in the u.s. >> you are looking at an overcast skyline. it is sunny.

>> good morning. welcome back to al jazeera america. i'm del walters. up next the conservative state of utah and the issue of same-sex marriage. first, we turn to deepwater horizon. >> some of the country enjoying warmer temperatures. across the southern plains and eastern u.s. slightly warmer thanks to a cold front dropping south wards through the northern plains. it has temperatures 43 degrees colder. temperatures as you step outside - teen bs, 20s, single

digits. it feels like minus 31. bit ir cold air in place. making it dangerous. into the north-east temperatures at or above average or at least at or above the freezing point supporting the moisture in the form of rain. northern new england it will turn colder and we'll see snow. milder with a chance of storm in the '70s, and '80s. >> a new year and image for boy soughts of america. openly gay scouts will be welcome. under the new rules kids can't be banned because of sexual orientation. >> same-sex couples in utah celebrating after the ban on same-sex marriage was overturned the the fight not over. the state wants the supreme court to step in.

jim hooley tells us why from salt lake city. >> this has been the scene in utah for days. same-sex couples pouring into country clerk offices to get marriage licences. many turning to country officials and ministers to say i do. >> to feel the love and the joy to marry the person they love. >> it was a shocking turn of event in ta state known for -- in a state known for conservative ways. >> all made possible by a lawsuit that challenged utah's law. among the plaintiffs derek kitchen and moudi sbeity. they run a middle eastern food business in salt lake city. >> we heard the news when we were making food for the farmers' market. >> a federal judge ruled utah's law banning same-sex marriage was unconstitutional.

more than 900 same-sex couples obtained marriage licences. there are thousands of couples that want the same thing we want. we are foyinging for hours, but in that process we fight for everybody. >> i now pronounce you wife and wife. >> clifford rosky is a law o prosore. he became a minister to marry couples. >> in utah federal courts recognise same sex couples have the right to marry. >> cheryl haws and shelly eyre's dream of marriage had to wait because the county clerk south of salt lake city refused to recognise the ruling. they threatened to sue. >> i said we are going there, even if they tonne us away and go to salt lake, we'll go there. we need to make a point.

>> brian thompson gave in and called shelly eyre and cheryl haws to come to his office and agreed to issue a licence. >> i felt it showed a level of compassion and integrity. i felt compassion towards him. >> moudi sbeity and derek kitchen have not tied the knot. they want to wait until they feel the time is right. >> marriage is more than a piece of paper. we want to celebrate, exchange vows and show that we have made a commitment to another, to be with each other until death do us part. >> by waiting moudi sbeity and derrick risk not getting a chance to marry. the attorney-general is appealing the ruling and will file paperwork monday or tuesday. >> that is jim hooley reporting.

since same-sex marriage has become legal. the numbers have sworn. >> half a million people filing claims for hurricane katrina, suing the army corps of engineers for the flooding we saw in 2005. the corp claimed immunity. stephanie boswell has more from new orleans. >> a highway in mexico collapsing 60 miles from tijuana after earthquakes rocked the area. the highway plunged into the sea. the road leaving to a busy port city. drivers are directed to a more scenic road. it could take up to a year to repair the damage. >> think xbox and playstation. the largest gaming convention in south america and sao paulo.

it cost a fortune, saying a lot about the brazilian economy. >> for five days they packed a convention centre. more than 150,000 turping up for the largest video game show. it's an annual game show. fanatics waited in line for four hours to get a chance to try this, the soon-to-be-released sony playstation four. in brazil the gaming device will cost $1,500, making it more expensive than anywhere else in the world, five times more than the suggested retail price in the u.s. 60% is due to brazilian taxes. >> if i have the opportunity to buy it, it will be abroad. >> translation: it's going to be sold to the brazilian elite. for it to be popular, the price

has to be released. no chance for people to buy it. >> it's not just imported video games, everything is. from eating out to buying groceries, new cars, pay more in brazil. there are a lot of reasons for it. some of it is because brazil has the highest taxes in the world. >> the tax rate in brazil is 36% of gdp. equivalent to the taxes in developing countries. we have a big boou okay rahsy. the government -- bureaucracy, and the government consumes a lot of wealth. >> this meter counts how much taxes brazilians are paying on goods and services. >> this year brazilians paid $1.2 trillion in ice and taxes. that's $550 billion.

in the next minute or so the meter will go up by 1.3 million. >> at this counselling center the line is out the door, representative of a slowing economy and people in debt to pay for the spending from the boon years. rising inflation and a slow down changing economic dynamics. they are awaiting a chance to buy the new games. here they'll have to save more money to pay for them. >> you may recall the protestor becoming commonplace in brazil. people upset that money is spent on the world cup in 2014, and not on essential services like public transportation. hundreds of bikers in colorado revving up engines in memory of

clair davis, the student shot at arapahoe high school. after the shooting the gunman took his life. donations will go to a charity in her name. >> andrew jacobs junior died at his home. jacobs coined the term chicken hop, those politicians advocating war but avoided service. >> new york mayor elect bill de blasio will have a special guest swearing him into office, former president bill clinton. bill de blasio serving in the clinton white house and was the campaign manager for hillary rod am clinton. bill de blasio using a bible owned by roosevelt. >> calls for ukraine's prime minister to step down as the opposition stages a large protest rally in the ukraine.

>> looking at the key moments. the first nine months of pope francis's papacy. >> we'll tell you about a school that has students flying high on success. >> coming up, a convoluted play-off picture in the n.f.l. who needs to win and who needs help. that's ahead. >> you're looking live in kiev where protesters take to the streets, demanding the situation there change in favour of the e.u.

>> good morning. welcome back to al jazeera america. i'm del walters. a suicide bomb attack in russia, killing 14, injuring dozens of

others. you are seeing a picture. a female suicide bomber detonated her exploifs. >> the female suicide bomber managed to get inside the train station and detonate the device in front of metal detectors. had she got through those, the casualties could have been higher. the effect of the blast was contained in the outside waiting area. president putin had been in touched with the authority, and they are declaring three days mourning in volgograd. president vladimir putin is offering medical flights for the injured, to bring them to moscow. it's not the first time that volgograd was hit.

on october 31st - sorry, the 21st, six people were killed, 35 injured when another female suicide bomber exploded her bomb aboard a crowded bus. the thoughts and concerns now is that mill tant islamists are threatening to disrupt the coming winter olympics on 4 february in a month's time. the russian authorities, federal forces deployed 37,000 police and army to make sure that doesn't happen. peter sharp reporting from moscow. >> to ukraine, protesters maintaining that theirs is a resolution to stablilize the country, not bring down the government. sink sink >> then there are images like this. for the past two months demonstrators calling for the removal of the president. jennifer glass is live in kiev.

why are they there this time? >> well, the demands really haven't changed in the past few weeks. the rallies started six weeks ago when president viktor yanukovych did not sign an association agreement with the european union. that was the heart of the rallies. many ukrainians believe that ukraine should be part of europe, asserted with europe and want to see the agreement as the first step. soon after that agreement was not signed, demonstrations started on the square. police came in and tried to get the protesters out of the square. it drew more people to independence square. >> in the last weeks or so. the numbers waned. demonstrations are going into their sixth week. the number is smaller each day.

the numbers are bigger. on the square behind me, maybe a few thousand, not the tens of thousand. >> we looked at video tape of the government using violence to put down the protest. are they still doing so? >> you know, there hasn't been - the police are very restrained in the last few days. the real demonstration is about 13 miles outside the town, near the president's pal racial home. hundreds of demonstrators on cars. they've been trying to reach the area. we haven't seen attacks on large group of demonstrators. there has been attacks on opponents on the government. a vicious attack on an anti-government journalist, chased in the streets of kiev, in her large car, for hours, in

the early hours of wednesday morning. a number of men pulled her out of the car and beat her and left her in a ditch. she is undergoing reinstructive surgery. the lace es in ain government activists who have been harassed or attacked in recent weeks. >> jennifer glass live from ukraine. >> one student is dead, the rut of violence in -- the result of violence in bangladesh. these are the images coming out of bangladesh. riot police responding with water canons and shooting at demonstrators. they are boycotting a january 5th general election. the opposition says it will not take part unless the prime minister resigns. >> in thailand protesters take to the streets, hoping to bring down the government of yingluck shinawatra. >> to the people in thailand

it's a familiar site. since 2005 the county saw various rounds of protests. this one similar to the one in 2005 and 2008. they are targeted at the shinawatra family. the deposed leader calls the shots through his sister, the current prime minister. >> the main opposition party will boycott snap elections. some analysts believe the decision is tactical. >> the last 20 years, they have an outright victory. being government is not because they win the election. therefore they probably felt, one, it's impossible for them to have a big chance to win in this coming election. that may be in the back of their mind. whether they admit it or not. >> the boycott could prompts a crisis like it did seven years ago. under thai law.

candidates have to win 20% of votes. in 2006 several seats were declared vacant, prompting the constitutional courts to void the results. >> the opposition leader denied accusations that his decision could lay the foundations for military intervention this time. >> the fact of the matter is we have nothing to gain from a coup. we will not be part of the government or power structure if there's a coup much we are trying to regain the trust that all political parties a lost, given the failed politics of the last decade. >> after the coup, parties won elections, only to be disqualified by the courts. it prompted street protest,

ending after the military moved in. politics in thailand is never straightforward. history showed no matter which side win, the rift in the divide stay open long after. >> thailand's prime minister is calling for elections in february, hoping to end the rallies. >> francis has been described as a major figure on the global stage, generating excitement among crowds. he's making headlines for saying what he thinks on issues like homosexuality and abortion. >> patrick joins us. let's look at the magazine covers with pope francis on both. named person of the year by time magazine and the advocate. what does it say about this man. >> it's amazing how unexpected the story is.

if you and i sat here a year ago. if you have shown me the cover i would have said pigs are flying. it's a remarkable turn of events. >> he's known for being unpredictable. is that good for the vatican >> it is good for the catholic church. >> it's app organization that lyin likes to manage their pr. >> the that is correct that he's on the covers shows the appeal he brings. he's a simple man, dresses simple, meets with the poor, reaches out to those that are marginalised. >> he takes the name of pope francis of asees si, wanting to be a man of the people. we are talking about a billion dollar institution. do they like to hear someone say, "let's give back to the

poor." >> it's from the beginning. he's borrowing from the earlier apostles, he's getting the catholic church back to its roots, sharing, reaching out in need. >> even though we say that, we see the papacy, the vatican, and all of the artwork, michel angelo, sis teen chapel. it defies the image of returning the money to the poor. >> that's where the surprises are. there was a rumour that the pope slips out to give whoms to the poor. the things he does, reaching out to a man whose face was covered in boils. these are images we have not seen, the pope being in direct contact with people. this is new. >> reaching out to another pope who lives behind the vatican. how awkward has it been, if at

all? >> i don't think any of us know. what the two men are like when it's the two of them in a room we don't know. publicly benedict has been supportive. pope francis paid homage to his predecessor. they represent two different sides of catholicism, one the intellectual three joingiccal -- threologyical mind and the social. >> he is about to name a thu cabinet. it says a lot about the man and those waiting in the wings, thinking that this was their time. will we see surpriseses? >> the most important thing about the card analyse is they are not a cabinet but the electoral college. maximum 120 men who vote on who the pope is. the choices made will not just define his papal si, buts when it is time for him to retire or

pass on. it will determine whether the next pope will be more like pope francis or ben dict. >> what is the third wheel in catholicism that you think he will not go near. >> he said he will not touch women priests. he said it's a closed question. something that john paul ii said would never happen. many catholics in the u.s. would be interested in seeing it appen. women priests may be the one. >> thank you patrick. >> mark morgan joins us in sports and the story of an unlikely hero. >> that's right. thank you so much. good morning. the miami heat without their big gun.

a shou down out west. it's the first game james has missed. the blazers tied 24 and 5. lebron james watched his team-mates in street clothes watching the blazers. portland has been doing this. hitting 11 beyond the ark. chris bovern huge. dwayne wayne. ties the game at 96. bosch with 37. final seconds - drew up a play in a previous time out. "no, i'll shoot a three and win the game", and he did. it set off a wild celebration. 108, 107 is your final. we'll see the final shot. a win for the defending champs. . >> once he got the ball, i

figured - we needed two points. the coach wanted me to pop for a long two, i told him, "let me pop for three", and i'm knock it down. we went in. >> you kids lisp to your coach. in la. it was the brake griffin show. scoring a season-high 40. 10 boards as well. griffin scoring 32 or more from the third time in four games, pouring in 18 in the fourth. clippers beating utah. >> it was one of the most anticipated u.f.c. matches, producing unexpected and shocking ending. this one ended at 116 of a second round when anderson silver threw a left leg kick. the ship bone snapped from the force of the blow. he fell to the angas wideman

peed silver. improving to 11 and 0. silver is left to ponder his future. >> going into the final day of the regular season, eight teams clenched 12 play-off spots. 10 have a chance to qualify, setting up an epic sunday of football with so many scenarios in play. here is a look at the important ones. there are three different win and in scenarios. winner of cowboys and eagles. winners of the bears and packers. the losers will be eliminated from the play-offs. it will clench spots with a win. it has a clans to clinch the south. >> now, as far as the afc is concerned there's one final play-off spot open. four teams are vying. the dolphins can clinch a spot.

that create a three way tie. in that situation miami clenches with a win. if the chargers won. miami owned ty break. one final notebreaking news out of france. reports that formula 1 driving legend chuck schumer suffered a head injury while skiing in france. he retired at the end of the 2012 season. that's a wrap for sports. >> sad news. >> the future of aerospace laying in the hands of students. we'll tell you about a different approach to education in seattle where college prep meets industry prep. and how colorado is bouncing back with flood damage with, of all things, rum. >> rain tracking up the east coastline. i'll have the details coming up

on where the rain changes to snow.

>> welcome back to al jazeera america. we'll look at students, but first we go to the weather. >> we have seen our fair share of wet weather. it looks like more is set to move in, it will head out along the east coastline. it's been heavy at times, reports of one to two inches. we are expecting half an nsh to an inch of rain. no matter flooding is a threat over northern and central georgia around atlanta including that area. travel along eye 75, 20 and i 25. it will be a mess. look at the widespread wet weather that we are seeing back into the ohio valley. it's been wet around d.c. and baltimore. we are seeing the rain lifting north into portions of new york state. as it lifts northward.

temperatures will fall. where we have the rain across northern areas of new england it will change the mix. expect to see accumulating snow there. not much snow across the midwest. more snow is expected. >> i know you remember this story. lots of people in colorado recovering from the devastating floods in september. now residents getting help from a survivor of the floods. they call is flood rum because it was stuck in 2 feet of mud. they are calling it flood rum. >> everyone asks when is the flood rum going to be ready. >> some of the proceeds to help the lions fire department rebuild their station house. >> high school graduation rates in the u.s. are at 40 year

highs, many seeing 75% earning high school diplomas. >> allen schauffler looks at a partnership in one school. it makes sense in a place called jet city, in a place where people worked designing and building airplanes, that there would be a school named aviation high, raisbeck, where you will see planes out the window and find skye mceowen loving maths. >> it's a language describing the universe. if you want to go to space and you want to develop things that work, we have to understandics -- understand physics and how it works. >> making a robotic theme is a big deal here, there is no sports. >> we put a go pro on the robot.

>> most classes have an i've nation space or theme. students have a laptop. >> only one in three who apply get into the school, and students come from all over the region, it's college prep meets industry prep. with 200 aviation related companies the business community has brought in, providing instructors, real-world job experience and money. seattle based alaska airlines. a million and a half for instruction. jet builder and major player boeing, 4 million. a third of 44 million price tag paid by private donors. boeing's international rival agrees. >> there is a gap we have to

fill. the aerospace industry is helping kids like these. our industry has huge changes, environmental, fuel efficiency, cost, quality challenges. to do this we need good people. >> among educators, there's push back. with the expectation that the employee pool will be improved and businesses will benefit. dr alex mohl nah is a long-time education researcher. he'd like to see corporations pay more taxes instead. >> it seems to me it's a good idea if it's a tax contribution. it's bad policy and a bad idea over the long term in you have a public education system relying on bits and scraps gin by a corporation -- given by a corporation here or there to

promote centres. >> the boss at aviation high sees the union differently. essential in a time when school budgets are under pressure. >> it's critical that stools be partnered. many educators are not worked outs the field of education. >> skye - she just wants to build spaceships and sees this place an a launch pad to that dream. >> it's humbling to go to the school. we are surrounded by male and female role models, they are showing us how to do it. >> there is a problem though, the aviation association says in coming years there may not be enough well qualified teachers to meet the new demand. it's a combination of r2-d2,

security robbos that go anywhere. they can see, and smell. taking 360 degree video and recognising gestures. some say it is a privacy risk. >> some folks said privacy concerns and might put people on edge. do you know what puts people on edge, being shot at. k5 is 5 feet tall and designed to send data wirelessly to a control center. >> people have a chance to get rid of bad memories in 2013 and get ready for a new year. for a family the event holds special meaning. al jazeera's correspondent reports. >> in a few days 2013 will be history. hundreds came out to say good riddance to the year.

tosses everything - sometimes from the suitcase into a mobile sweater. the idea is to let go of the old and usher in a new year. from bad grades to bad relationships. >> she's shredding her ex-husband. >> and bad attitudes. >> good buy to my 14-year-old son's moody attitudes. >> people cast off unkind memories. the johnson family came from north carolina. >> our second was diagnose with a time or in his kidney and wept there 7 months of chemotherapy, so we are saying goodbye to cancer. >> and a stack of medical bills. the johnson's are the winner of the cop test and a trip -- contest and a trip to the big apple. >> we feel great, it was an experience to watch it shred all

the bills. the cat scan picture. that's the coolest way to say goodbye to bad memories. starting 2014 in a fresh, happy years. >> goodbye to cancer and hello to a happy and healthy 2014. >> by the way in case you are keeping track, they have been doing this for seven years. that will do it for this edition of al jazeera america. more headlines ahead. in 2.5 minutes. check us out 24 hours a day. 24/7 at aljazeera.com.

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